Original Article By Anugrah Kumar
The executive director of a Black Lives Matter chapter in Oklahoma has been charged with wire fraud and money laundering involving millions of dollars in donor funds. Federal prosecutors say she used the money for personal travel, shopping and real estate.
Tashella Sheri Amore Dickerson, 52, faces 20 counts of wire fraud and five counts of money laundering for allegedly diverting more than $3.15 million in charitable donations from accounts linked to Black Lives Matter Oklahoma City, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Oklahoma.
The indictment alleges that from June 2020 to at least October 2025, she transferred bail refund checks into personal bank accounts and used the money for expenses unrelated to the group’s stated mission.
Dickerson began leading BLM OKC in 2016.
The group received donations through the Arizona-based Alliance for Global Justice, which acted as a fiscal sponsor. BLM OKC was not registered as a tax-exempt organization, but its sponsor required funds to be used in line with nonprofit purposes and prohibited real estate purchases without approval.
Between spring 2020 and late 2025, BLM OKC raised more than $5.6 million, primarily from online contributors and national bail funds. These funds were intended to post bail for individuals arrested during violent protests after George Floyd, who was high on fentanyl and methamphetamine when he died while restrained in police custody.
The indictment states that when those bail funds were returned, Dickerson kept them for herself and spent them on vacations, luxury items and property.
Court documents say Dickerson used the money to travel to Jamaica and the Dominican Republic, spend tens of thousands of dollars on retail shopping, and buy a 2021 Hyundai Palisade. She also reportedly paid over $50,000 for food and grocery deliveries and acquired six properties in Oklahoma City, some in her name and others in the name of Equity International LLC, a company she controlled.
The charges also accuse Dickerson of submitting two false annual reports to the Alliance for Global Justice, stating the funds had been used for tax-exempt purposes while omitting any mention of personal spending, according to The Associated Press.
If convicted, Dickerson could face up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each wire fraud count, and up to 10 years and a similar fine for each money laundering count. She has not been taken into custody.
In a Facebook livestream following the indictment, she said, “I cannot make an official comment about what transpired today,” adding, “I am home. I am safe. I have confidence in our team.”
Dickerson founded the chapter in 2016 and has been associated with the Church of the Open Arms, which belongs to the United Church of Christ, where she is listed as an associate minister. The church previously held fundraisers for the BLM chapter.
State records show the properties she bought were acquired between 2021 and 2022, including one labeled “church property.” That building was intended for BLM OKC use but was deeded in her name.
She also has Universal Life Church minister credentials filed in Oklahoma County.
Social media posts show Dickerson traveling and engaging with political figures. In one photo, she is standing next to Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn. Her posts also reference figures such as Assata Shakur, a convicted murderer and member of the Black Liberation Army who died in Cuba in September.
Funds to BLM OKC were routed not only through the Alliance for Global Justice but also via George Soros’ Tides Center, another nonprofit supporting progressive organizations.
The Tides Foundation, affiliated with that center, is facing a lawsuit from the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation for allegedly mismanaging $33 million.
The Alliance for Global Justice has also supported other controversial organizations, including Samidoun, which the U.S. Treasury Department has linked to a designated terrorist group.
The Black Lives Matter network has faced other financial scandals.
In 2021, founder Patrisse Cullors resigned after reports surfaced of her buying several homes and awarding large contracts to relatives, according to the New York Post. In a separate case, Sir Maejor Page, who ran a fraudulent BLM group in Atlanta, was convicted of defrauding donors and sentenced to 42 months in prison last year.
Dickerson’s chapter is not affiliated with the national organization currently under federal investigation. The Justice Department issued subpoenas in the fall to determine whether leaders misused tens of millions in donations raised during the 2020 protests.
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